by Shannon Hilson, MoreHorror.com
Although I absolutely love horror as a genre, even I have to admit that I get tired of watching the same old thing. After all, a person can only watch so many remakes, knock-offs, and rehashed ideas before they’re really craving something a little different. American Mary– the latest offering from twin sister directors Jen and Sylvia Soska (Dead Hooker in a Trunk) -- presents horror fans with the chance to explore territory that’s somewhat familiar, but in a way that’s modern, fresh, and totally in step with some of today’s hottest trends in body modification.
The plot follows the life of smart, attractive medical student Mary Mason (Katherine Isabelle). Like many young people, Mary is working hard to make something of herself and earn her medical degree. However, there are more than a few obstacles standing in her way and making it hard for her. These include a professor she can’t seem to stop infuriating, as well as a pile of bills that only seems to keep getting higher. Mary’s life takes an interesting new turn when she applies for a job at a local strip club as a solution to her financial woes, but winds up having to use her budding medical skills to perform an emergency underground surgery instead.
From there, Mary finds herself lured into the exciting but gruesome world of underground radical body modification. Over time, her talents as a surgeon find her running a highly profitable underground business and meeting a wealth of interesting new clients. However, things naturally aren’t just that simple. American Mary is the story of what happens when a very normal young medical student makes the decision to descend into a dark, but utterly fascinating new world in search of the almighty dollar.
Those who saw the Soska sisters’ previous film Dead Hooker in a Trunk (review) will be pleasantly surprised at the time, care, and quality that went into filming American Mary. While Hooker certainly had its strong points and was entertaining enough, it still had a relatively homemade feel to it that separated it from bigger films in the genre. However, Mary feels like a bona fide theatrical horror film in every way. The look of it is gorgeous, the writing is smart, and the plot definitely satisfies one’s need for something dark, juicy, and depraved, but without it going so far that it becomes nothing but a sensationalized gore-fest.
The characters are well-developed and the acting is really quite good to boot. Katherine Isabelle especially turns in a memorable performance as the strong, but unpredictable Mary. However, Tristan Risk is also a major highlight in her role as Beatress, a woman who has devoted her life and her finances to surgeries to make herself look exactly like Betty Boop. The Soska sisters themselves even make a cameo as a particular interesting pair of potential patients for Mary.
Overall, I really enjoyed this film and was pleasantly surprised by how good it was. I would even say that it has quite a bit of rewatch potential, so I could definitely see myself revisiting this now and again. It was creepy, it was dark, and it was disturbing. It was also plenty bloody… but not so much so that it distracted from the plotline or the characters themselves. Also, this film is just plain visually appealing to watch and the plot is unique enough and smart enough to keep even a fickle viewer watching. Fans of the Twisted Twins’ other work and of films like Ginger Snaps will definitely want to give it a try. It’s available now on DVD and Blu-Ray at a video store or retail outlet near you!